POLICE are still trying to identify the body of a woman found in a stream near Newport.

POLICE are still trying to identify the body of a woman found in a stream near Newport.

The body was found on farmland in Malpas last month and has been linked to the disappearance of localpensioner Marie Veronica Reynolds.

It was discovered in a stream that leads to a canal half a mile from the home of Mrs Reynolds, who has been missing since August 2002.

A spokeswoman for Gwent Police said tests are continuing on the body this week.

She said, "The identification process is ongoing but we haven't got anything at the moment."

Gwent Police have not ruled out linking the body to the disappearance of Mrs Reynolds, 70, and conducted a forensic investigation of an area of farmland betweenMalpas and Bettws.

The body was found submerged in the water by a local landowner.

Mrs Reynolds, described by police as an active 70-year-old, has not been seen since she said goodbye to her nephew nearly 18 months ago.

In April 2003 officers dug up fields near the Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal in the hunt for Mrs Reynolds.

Police decided to excavate the fields next to the canal bank after discovering that during the time of her disappearance, Wessex Water workers had filled in a number of pits near the canal, which is only a short distance from her home.